Swine flu-hit Mumbai youth still remains critical

Mumbai, Aug 9 (PTI) The condition of a 28-year-old swine
flu patient admitted to a hospital here remains critical,
hospital authorities said on Sunday.

"Sandeep Gaikwad, a resident of Chandivili is still
critical and put on ventilator but is stable. He is being
treated as per doctors' advise from Kasturba Hospital,"
Manager of H L Hiranandi Hospital Manish Joshi told PTI.

Three persons have succumbed to swine flu--two in
Maharashtra and one in Gujarat--since Saturday. 53-year-old
Fehmida Panwala died at Kasturba Hospital (the main Civic
referral hospital) after being shifted from Lilavati
Hospital, health officials said.

Pravin Patel (43) died of swine flu in Ahmedabad on
Saturday, while Sanjay Tukaram Kokre(42), a teacher from
Kedgaon near Pune also succumbed to the virus on Saturday
evening, the officials said.

Patel's wife is also admitted in the hospital and
getting screened for the flu in Gujarat, they said.

Meanwhile, 14 positive H1N1 cases are undergoing
treatment in Kasturba Hospital and 45 suspected cases are
admitted till Sunday morning, the Civic Disaster Management
Cell said.

Earlier, 14-year-old school Reeda Shaikh died in Pune due
to H1N1 making her the first victim of the virus in the
country on August 3.

Civic health officials on Sunday once again appealed
to people that they should make use of the helpline--23083901
before getting admitted to any hospital for flu like problems.

"Many of them go to private hospital and then when
they become serious, they are shifted to Kasturba Hospital,
which is not good for them," a senior civic official said.

On the helpline, counselling is done for the patients
and also given advise for home quarantine, screening and also
admission when necessary, the official said.

"Citizens should not panic and if they have any throat
infection, they should visit civic hospitals at the earliest,"
he said.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Government has set up two new
screening-cum-isolation centres with Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
facilities in Sidharth Hospital, Goregaon in the Western
suburbs and M T Agarwal Hospital at Mulund in Eastern suburbs.

Three more hospitals--Bhabha at Bandra, Bhagwati
Hospital at Borivali and Rajawadi at Ghatkopar will be the
screening centres and will not admit anyone.

The Dhirubhai Ambain International School in Bandra
Kurla Complex has closed down its school for a week after one
of the students tested positive for H1N1, the school sources
said.

Similarly, J B Vacha School at Dadar has been closed
for a week after a student was tested positive for H1N1. PTI
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